Artist Spotlight: Meet Rusty Halo
How did you come up with the idea?
Mircha (vocalists): We were in the early stages of the band, and we gathered at Altin’s house (guitar) to do a recording session together. The first 5 songs were written between me and Adriaan and built the foundation of the setlist and sound of the band.
However, we are aware that in order to have a sound that is unique, we need to try and incorporate everyone’s vision into the new songs.
And as the session went along... I think at some point the bass line was presented by Franco (bass) and the rest of the guys just took it over. It went on for like half an hour in a loop and what is now known as the song started to take shape.
Adriaan (guitarist): I remember that was the first "full band" writing session we had, since all of the previous material was written before the rest of the guys joined us. It was interesting because at first the process felt a bit slower, until everyone got comfortable and found their place within the composition. We took Franco's bass idea and came up with some different progressions to break it up a bit, but we instantly recognised that the song had good potential.
Mircha: I was just listening carefully, trying to find an entry point into the composition and to try and catch some phrases or words out of the aether as I usually do. Sometimes images and words or complete sentences just come to me and I try to follow the path... like a yellow brick road type thing.
On this occasion, not much was coming up but... for whatever reason Altin had a street sign that read “THE END” on one of his bookshelves just above the laptop. In my struggle for inspiration, I looked at the sign and mindlessly started singing on top of the riff: “Is the end... is the end... is the end…” then another sentence appeared as a follow-up: “is the end of all the roads that you know you’ve walked before... Is the EEEND.” That’s the main thing that established the subject of the song and the sort of imagery of it. From then onwards the concept of the song lyrically started building itself up. I like to believe in this concept that we are just vessels and the words and the artwork, be it visual or sonic, just find a way of materialising themselves through our senses and capacity to articulate thought, emotion and imagery into either objects or recorded ephemeral spells which we call songs or recordings.
Adriaan: When Mircha started singing about The End, I immediately thought "well that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?" The end of what exactly \[laughs...] To me, The End is a concept of transformation really. Nothing truly ends, it just transforms into something else. But of course, as a society we’ve always thought of the end as something final.
Mircha: From then onwards I just started expanding on this concept of what is “THE END.” When will it all end? How will it end? When will I pass away, will I be aware of it or would it be fast? Would I be old? Would I be young? Will the world get sucked into a black hole? Would WWIII end it all? Will it implode? What are others thinking their own END is going to be like? Would they still be around? Would anyone still be around?
Aren’t we welcoming the end at the end of each day when we succumb to sleep?
And all that kind of stuff... \[laughs]
Were there any memorable or standout moments during the recording sessions for "The End?"
Mircha: Hmm... memorable moments... I think the song went through a few versions since its inception and we had to cut some of it as it was quite long... It’s already very long. But we wanted it to feel like a long-distance driving song. Like driving a long wide road through a vast landscape to the end of your mind... as far as you can imagine... think... until you reach THE END! \[laughs]
Adriaan: Well to me it was interesting that when we first recorded drums for this song, our current drummer Cris wasn’t really part of the band yet. We asked him to record some of our songs as a session player, he came up with some very good ideas and grooves and the song started to take a different direction. After a few recording sessions we asked him if he’d be interested in joining the band, and even though he was quite busy with other projects we managed to convince him \[laughs].
Mircha: For me, the most memorable moment from this whole process is the inception of it and the big lesson that came with boredom or finding myself not knowing what to do. Feeling stuck, with no clue... like having a block. Looking at that random street sign on that bookshelf. Just looking around and trying to let the reality around me guide me or just surrender into the process... I’ve learnt that by being open and surrendering, ideas will flow, or somehow the universe or God or whatever you might want to call it, The Higher Self, will find a way of channelling a concept or a message. I truly believe that these “downloads” of information from the aether are waiting to be birthed into the world. They are like a gift from the other side, that come to our world to make it a much more beautiful and colourful place. Like a nice and fresh piece of furniture from Ikea in your living room that you’d be staring at for months or something like that... \[laughs]
Is there a particular message or theme you hope listeners take away from "The End?"
Mircha: I hope that people who listen to the track enjoy the music first of all... Regarding the meaning of the song, I think this is one of those that links humour with an existential crisis... so maybe if anyone feels down and out, there’s a message to not give up as we don’t live twice but once is enough, as the song says. I want people to know that it’s okay to be afraid of things, to have intrusive thoughts, and if life sometimes gets hard... well that is not the end but just a passage, an episode that will only make us stronger. We experience the end of things every day, and it’s fine to accept that.
Adriaan: To me, the message of this song is to not worry too much about the end, learn to let it go. I think as a society we’re always kind of programmed to worry about death — when will it come, what will happen after, and so on. And we forget to live our lives fully, always caught up with thoughts about the “what if” questions that come to mind. Once you stop worrying about the end of things — the end of life, the end of your relationships, the end of your job, etc... you can truly live in the moment and appreciate what you have at any stage of your life.
Mircha: The song also has a humorous side to it... it’s written from the perspective of someone who is one day bored, staring at a wall or a blue sky and just randomly wondering when the end of everything will come around. Will it ever? It’s quite silly to think of it, but at the same time also philosophical. I find humour in that. Laughter and humour allow us to get through life’s hardships with grace.
What is your creative vision as a band?
Mircha: I am really inspired by a great number of artists and musicians of the 20th century... you name it — everyone! Each artist is the sum of all individual pieces of inspiration that we’ve drawn from somewhere — we’re like a complex puzzle. Our creative DNA and universe as artists and people is constantly changing. With that being mentioned... when me and Adriaan started working together we sort of set out to create a band that stands somewhere between Queen, Led Zeppelin and all the history in between... all the way to Radiohead, Soundgarden, but with a contemporary flair. Someone described our set as: “Listening to you guys is like listening to the entire history of rock music condensed in one hour.”
That is very flattering and I get emotional when people recognise that we are trying to carve out a space within the industry or history of the music that we enjoy, and we would like to contribute to that somehow.
Adriaan: Creatively speaking, I think that Rusty Halo is a space for us where we can express our musical journey filtered through a rock music lens. Each of us comes from different backgrounds and we have different tastes, influences, styles and so on, but the common denominator is our love for rock music. I think we’re at a stage of exploration since we’ve only released two singles so far, and our sound is still shaping and evolving. However, anyone who’s listened to us so far can tell that we have our own style, even at this early stage — at least that’s what we like to tell ourselves \[laughs].
Mircha: Rusty Halo is a project that is constantly looking at different genres and making uncanny choices in sort of breaking down our own preconceived ideas, biases and all that, packaged into a hard rock formula. So... overall we don’t know exactly what it’s going to look like... The greatest work is yet to come... even though our first 2 singles are very hard rock and nicely tucked into the rock label cabinet top drawer... we have much more than that coming up.
The name itself... which is derived from the Rusty Old Halo gospel song... We think it speaks for itself. It’s all this packaging with a spiritual undertone to it and we like to call it: Alchemical Hard Rock... We turn metal into gold!!! \[laughs]
Adriaan: Yeah, in terms of our name, you can interpret it in many ways. To me, the Halo represents the connection to divinity, God, the source — whatever you want to call it. Having a “Rusty Halo” could mean that you’ve done some questionable things in your life, or you have strayed off the path, but your connection to the spiritual realm is still there. There’s always something higher than you, or your ego, which you can tap into.
What do you enjoy most about performing live and connecting with your audience?
Mircha: For me, performing is a spiritual thing. I recognise the origins of rock music in the American gospel churches and processions as well as the primordial act of expression of getting together and jumping and dancing to a drum beat around the fire. And of course all of the history and infinite versions of rock ‘n’ roll that marry other genres and influences... be it psychedelic, Krautrock, industrial, metal, blues, jazz, operatic, tribal, alien... you name it!
Adriaan: To me, our songs — and music in general — are expressed in their truest form when played live. It’s raw, it’s authentic. When we play live we can witness in real time the audience’s reaction, we can feel their energy and we give more energy to them in return. The wild feeling of it, being able to express through music everything you have inside and people reacting to it... it’s a beautiful thing.
Mircha: I truly believe that when we play live and we are in the zone we become vessels of energy, and that we are there to serve a higher purpose for the audience in front of us. I believe that the universe speaks through us when we are all connected. The most valuable aspect of performing live for me is when I manage to link into the core, the source of myself and just deliver the performance and make people move or sing back. The world is definitely a better place when we all sing together. Singing has a healing property... I am sure of that! The most important part of me as a performer and frontman is that the audience connects to the music and the stories we tell through it, and that they leave our shows feeling recharged or inspired... I love looking people in the eyes and having that immediate connection to them. Honest, truthful, no ego... Let’s just all meet in this musical realm and let loose... go crazy kind of thing! I think that’s where that Gospel element comes in... then the guitar riffs and the electricity of the sound just make it more powerful!
Adriaan: Also the fact that each show is unique. We might play the same setlist, but the way we play it each night is different, and the audience also reacts differently every time. So everyone is experiencing a truly one-of-a-kind thing when this happens.
Mircha: We recently decided to call our fans the HALO ARMY... \[laughs]... We want to maybe make people understand that sometimes fighting the darker side of your life requires going there first and shining a light to see the gremlins in the eyes, which cause the problems, and scare them away with dance and songs or screams! \[laughs]
